Neatorama |
- Goodbye, Farewell, and A*M*E*N
- Skullball Machine
- Resident Evil 6 Trailer Finds The Series Returning To Its Roots
- Some Of The Most Blatant Rip-Offs In Video Game History
- Ice Cube Celebrates The Eames
- The Artist That Literally Paints Herself Into A Corner
- Apocalypse Later, Surf Now – A Not So Endless Summer
- Can America Make the iPhone? (Hint: It’s Not About The Labor Cost)
- Tea Bag Cookies
- Breakdancing Traffic Cop
- Vespa Computer Workstation
- Crab Galaxies
- Grass Flip Flops Let You Walk Barefoot Everywhere
- Huge Spider Puppet
- LEGO USS Reliant From Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan
- Guide to Flirtation of Yore
- Sterling Cooper Vader Price. How May I Direct Your Call?
| Goodbye, Farewell, and A*M*E*N Posted: 23 Jan 2012 05:05 AM PST
The final episode of M*A*S*H aired on February 28, 1983. It wasn’t just a “TV event” …it was the most-watched episode in scripted TV history. WAR IS SWELL M*A*S*H was a sitcom based on a cynical movie inspired by a cynical book about an unpopular war. It was also one of the most successful TV shows of all time. Chronicling the doctors and nurses of the 4077TH Mobile Army Surgical Hospital during the Korean War (1950-1953), the first season in 1972 drew such low ratings that CBS nearly canceled it. But they gave it a chance, and by season two, M*A*S*H was a top 10 show. For the remainder of its 11-year run, it never fell out of the top 20. Until 1983, M*A*S*H was a fixture on Monday night at 9:00 PM on CBS. But by the time it ended, it had evolved into a much different show than it had been at the start. FROM SILLY TO SERIOUS The biggest reason for M*A*S*H‘s change in tone was Alan Alda, who starred as Captain “Hawkeye” Pierce, the unit’s chief surgeon. After series creator Larry Gelbart left the show in 1976, Alda took over as head writer. He, along with executive producer Burt Metcalfe, convinced CBS to phase out the laugh track and focus less on the doctors’ womanizing and pranks and more on character development and honest depictions of the horrors of war. Result: M*A*S*H was no longer a comedy with occasional drama, but a drama with occasional comedy. “We’re recreating a time of suffering and joy and revelation that happened to real people at a real time,” said Alda. “We know what they went through. We can’t be casual in the face of that.” THE BEGINNING OF THE END
That wasn’t Alda’s first choice. He wanted the last M*A*S*H to be a regular 30-minute episode. At the end of his version, the audience would hear the director yell “Cut!” and the camera would move back to reveal the crew. Alda would take off his surgical mask and address the viewers with a short, heartfelt tribute to veterans. CBS nixed that plan, so Alda and eight other writers began penning “Goodby, Farewell, and Amen.” When M*A*S*H‘s end date was announced in the fall of 1982, it became the biggest story in entertainment. Many fans mourned the show’s end. “The general viewing audience will feel a tremendous disappointment when M*A*S*H finally goes off the air,” reported Dr. Robert London, a psychiatrist at the NYU Medical Center, adding that viewers might even suffer withdrawal symptoms. (CBS mourned the end of its hit show by 30-second advertising spots on its finale for $450,000 each -about a millions dollars in today’s money.) In fact, M*A*S*H fans were so eager to find out what would become of Hawkeye, B.J., Col. Potter, Charles, Margaret, Klinger, and Father Mulcahy that a Fall 1982 edition of the National Enquirer promising exclusive scoops on the final episode sold out: “One character goes crazy, one is wounded in action, one leaves early, and one remains in Korea!” (They were right.) PLAYING CHICKEN While the final episode was being filmed, a forest fire swept through the outdoor set in the hills outside Malibu, leaving only a burned-out Jeep and the “Best Care Anywhere” sign standing. And only half of the scenes had been shot. Undeterred, Alda wrote the fire into the story: North Koreans had set off incendiary devices, causing a blaze and the evacuation of the 4077th.
On February 28, 1983, “Goodbye, Farewell, and Amen” aired on CBS. Directed by Alda, it was unlike any other M*A*S*H episode. It opens with Hawkeye in a mental institution, recalling a horrific experience to Dr. Sidney Freedman (Alan Arbus), M*A*S*H‘s psychiatrist. Over the course of the first hour, Hawkeye reveals a horrific ordeal he experienced while hiding in a bus with some Korean refugees. (A chicken was making noise, putting them all in danger of being captured by the Chinese, so Hawkeye told the woman to “shut the chicken up!” Hawkeye soon remembers that it wasn’t a chicken but a baby, and that the mother had smothered it.) Later, he’s deemed fit to return to duty, but it’s obvious that he’s damaged -especially when he risks his life to drive an abandoned tank out of camp to draw enemy fire away from the hospital. That took up the first hour; the second hour and a half was about the cease-fire ending the Korean War, and saying goodbye. In the iconic final scene, Hawkeye boards a helicopter and looks down at the camp from above. He sees someone had written “GOODBYE” in rocks on the ground. The helicopter flies away. THE AFTERM*A*T*H Even now, 28 years later, “Goodbye, Farewell, and Amen” still holds the record for the most-watched scripted TV episode. (The previous record holder was 1980′s “Who Shot J.R?” episode of Dallas.) It’s estimated that between 105 million and 121 million people tuned in, more than half of the U.S. population at the time. No single American TV broadcast surpassed the finale until the 2010 Super Bowl. And it’s likely that M*A*S*H will hold on to this record for a long time, perhaps forever. Why? In the early 1980s, network television was the biggest thing going in home entertainment. But today, audiences are divided among hundreds of cable channels, DVDs, video games, and the Internet. The M*A*S*H finale was such an event that it affected everyday life. Newspapers reported that more than a million New Yorkers all flushed their toilets at once immediately after the show ended (they’d all waited until the end). According to “The Straight Dope’s” Cecil Adams, it nearly brought on a plumbing catastrophe: “The resultant pressure drop caused a pronounced surge in the two huge tunnels that bring water into New York each day.” And according to New York Magazine, classical radio stations across the country were inundated with requests for a Mozart piece called “Quintet for Clarinet and Strings, K 581″ just after the show. The music figured into a poignant subplot where the snooty Major Charles Emerson Winchester II (David Ogden Stiers) teaches a group of Chinese prisoners of war how to play it. F*A*C*T*S
* Klinger, Potter, and Mulcahy reunited in the CBS spinoff series AfterMASH, which lasted two seasons (1983-1985). In 1984, CBS aired a pilot called W*A*L*T*E*R about Radar (Gary Burghoff), the camp’s original company clerk, but the show was not picked up. * During the filming of the finale, the Smithsonian Institution requested that set pieces, props, and costumes be set aside for the Museum of American History in Washington, D.C. Later, the M*A*S*H exhibit broke so many attendance records that it was extended for six months, and a few items are still on display today. And if you go to Malibu Creek State Park, about 25 miles north of Los Angeles, you can touch a piece of TV history -a burned-out Jeep carcass from the old 4077th. ___________________
Since 1988, the Bathroom Reader Institute had published a series of popular books containing irresistible bits of trivia and obscure yet fascinating facts. If you like Neatorama, you’ll love the Bathroom Reader Institute’s books – go ahead and check ‘em out!  |
| Posted: 23 Jan 2012 05:04 AM PST Are you redecorating a nursery? If so, I’ve got a great idea for it! Kids love gumball machines. And skulls. Artist Marco Perego combined the two for an exhibit at the Galerie Gmurzynska in Zurich, Switzerland. Link -via @itscolossal | Museum Website |
| Resident Evil 6 Trailer Finds The Series Returning To Its Roots Posted: 23 Jan 2012 12:01 AM PST If you’re tired of the zombie-less, cinematic cutscene instead of visceral gameplay direction that the Resident Evil video game series has been heading in over the years, then you’re in for a treat when the newest incarnation (#6) is released in spring 2012. Taking the series back to it’s roots promises to be a horrifying experience, full of zombies, giant genetic monstrosities and hardcore combat. Personally, I blame the movies for the direction that the games have been going in since their release, and this trailer shows that the game designers aren’t content with letting their zombified series turn into schlocky Hollywood drivel without a bloody battle. I can’t wait to get my hands on this one and start splitting some heads, even if that split head grows fangs and bites back! –via Topless Robot |
| Some Of The Most Blatant Rip-Offs In Video Game History Posted: 22 Jan 2012 11:52 PM PST Movies aren’t the only entertainment medium fond of ripping off ideas, video games have been ripping each other off from day one. The games on this list compiled by Dorkly are made up of familiar games with a slightly different look, proving that imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery, but it generally doesn’t help you sell your product. From Super Mario Bros. to Street Fighter, to (relatively) newer games like Team Fortress and Grand Theft Auto, no popular game is safe from copycats, yet sometimes a rip-off game takes on a life of its own and makes it big. So, should we hate on imitators, or enjoy the way they lampoon the big names in the industry? |
| Posted: 22 Jan 2012 11:26 PM PST Superstar rapper, actor and all around fly individual Ice Cube has come a long way from his days in the gangsta rap group N.W.A., or has he? Turns out this boy from tha hood once studied Architectural Drafting, to perhaps design his own hood some day, and he found inspiration in the husband and wife design team Charles and Ray Eames. The Eames’ have created everything from furniture to toys to architecture, and Ice Cube has chosen to celebrate the style and simplicity of the Eames House as part of the series PacificStandardTime: Art In L.A. 1945-1980 . He’s got a lotta love for the Eames’ and the City of Angels, so haters need not apply. –via BoingBoing |
| The Artist That Literally Paints Herself Into A Corner Posted: 22 Jan 2012 11:19 PM PST Peruvian artist Cecilia Paredes takes anonymity to a whole new level-by painting herself into the background. She cleverly matches the background patterns and paints them onto her Link –via DesignTAXI |
| Apocalypse Later, Surf Now – A Not So Endless Summer Posted: 22 Jan 2012 11:12 PM PST YouTuber keef70 decided to use 3d and visual effects software to spice up his surf videos, and in my opinion he did a great job! Here’s what led to making this ambitious short: I wanted to learn more about digital filming, formats, and editing and since I surfed, the GoPro seemed like a natural place to start. I figured after filming and editing a few vids I could move up to something like a Canon 7d, 5d, or the Nikon equivalent. I got the idea for this after looking through all my footage and I’ve always been curious how effects artists match CG with filmed footage… So I decided to figure out what software I needed and do it. That’s why it took me a year to do, because I was learning the software as I was doing it. I could see this becoming a new trend in extreme sports videos, because nothing says extreme like explosions in the sky! –via Geeks Are Sexy |
| Can America Make the iPhone? (Hint: It’s Not About The Labor Cost) Posted: 22 Jan 2012 11:07 PM PST
Jobs replied that the iPhone could never be made in the United States ... and no, it's not because American labor costs (in fact, labor cost is a tiny fraction of the cost of making an iPhone). It's because America simply doesn't have the manufacturing might anymore:
Charles Duhigg and Keith Bradsher wrote this intriguing article over at The New York Times about the death of manufacturing and the disappearing American middle class - if you read only one thing today, make it this one: Link | TLDR? Here it is in video summary |
| Posted: 22 Jan 2012 06:56 PM PST Kim of Party Frosting made these adorable cookies when she saw wooden tea bag toys. It occurred to her that she could make a tastier alternative out of shortbread. With a touch of chocolate frosting, they really do look like tea bags. Link -via Tasteologie |
| Posted: 22 Jan 2012 05:16 PM PST (Video Link) This video, allegedly from the Philippines, shows a traffic cop who has missed his calling. But will it Benny Hillify? -via Boing Boing |
| Posted: 22 Jan 2012 03:41 PM PST Australian designer David Giametta’s 1968 Vespa scooter was beyond restoration, but not beyond repurposing. He modded the back end into a hip laptop desk. Link -via Walyou (warning: auto-sound) P.S. Giametta took the front end of the scooter and turned it into a lounge chair. |
| Posted: 22 Jan 2012 03:24 PM PST Some crab species burrow homes into sandy beaches. As they dig, they form sand and dirt into small spheres, which they then push to the surface. When large colonies of crabs are active, they can form unintentional but intricate and beautiful patterns, such as this one in Thailand. You can view many more pictures at the link. Link -via Kuriositas | Photo: Flickr user Jody McIntyre |
| Grass Flip Flops Let You Walk Barefoot Everywhere Posted: 22 Jan 2012 03:16 PM PST |
| Posted: 22 Jan 2012 03:11 PM PST (Video Link) Don’t run away, Meat Shield. It’s a hundred experience points, yours for the taking. Just keep his attention while we slip around behind him. -via Super Punch | Artist’s Website |
| LEGO USS Reliant From Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan Posted: 22 Jan 2012 02:54 PM PST The redoubtable Miranda-class cruisers were in Starfleet service for a century and saw action from the Battle of the Mutara Nebula to the Battle of Cardassia. For us Trekkies, the most famous was the Reliant, which was hijacked by Khan Noonien Singh in the second Star Trek movie. Christer Nyberg made this LEGO model of it using about ten to fifteen thousand pieces. It’s equipped with numerous lights, which you can see at the link. Link -via Geekosystem |
| Posted: 22 Jan 2012 02:31 PM PST
The 13 rules of eye flirtation above probably saved society from descending into eye flirtation chaos - I mean, could you imagine what would happen if someone mistook the secret signals? *Shudders* Thank goodness that the now-defunct Taranaki Herald of New Zealand publshed the complete guides for flirtation, which includes the rules for fan flirtation, glove flirtation, hat flirtation, and parasol flirtation, reproduced here: via Lists of Note |
| Sterling Cooper Vader Price. How May I Direct Your Call? Posted: 22 Jan 2012 02:30 PM PST (Video Link) Dann Matthews is right. Darth Vader and Don Draper have a lot in common, such as a mysterious past and the ability to force-choke people at ten paces. -via Popped Culture |
The following article is from the book 
M*A*S*H remained popular through all the changes, but after 10 seasons, Alda and company were running out of stories to tell about a three-year war. CBS wasn’t willing to call it a day, though, and convinced Metcalfe and Alda to return for a final season that would conclude in February 1983 with a movie-length finale.
(Image credit: Flickr user 
* Each main characters exits the show in a different form of vehicle: Hawkeye in a helicopter, B.J. on a motorcycle, Col. Potter (Harry Morgan) on his horse, Charles in a garbage truck, Margaret in a Jeep, Father Mulcahy (William Christopher) in an ambulance, and Corporal Kinger (Jamie Farr) in the back of an oxcart.
The article above was reprinted with permission from 
Back in February, President Obama surprised Steve Jobs with a question of what it would take to make the iPhones in the United States, rather than China. 
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